


Parsley, Sage, Rosemary and Thyme - Chapter Four

by CavalierWolfe



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-13
Updated: 2019-11-13
Packaged: 2021-01-29 19:15:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,117
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21415282
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CavalierWolfe/pseuds/CavalierWolfe
Summary: Plagued with dreams of his past, the boy traitor wakes up in a stranger's bed. But is his benefactor friend or foe?
Relationships: Mikasa Ackerman/Eren Yeager, Porco Galliard/Pieck, Reiner Braun/Krista Lenz | Historia Reiss
Comments: 15
Kudos: 39





	Parsley, Sage, Rosemary and Thyme - Chapter Four

_Here's forty coppers on the drum_  
For those who'll volunteer to come;  
To 'list and slay titans today!  
Over the walls and far away!  
O'er the walls with great finesse.  
Through Orvud, Trost and Stohess.  
King Fritz commands and we obey!  
Over the walls and far away!

The raucous singing filled Reiner's ears as he sat in his seat in the dining hall. It was strange...there was a small part of him that expected Shadis to burst through the door, to demand to know what the noise was, and to start doling out punishments; he wondered who Mikasa would blame for passing gas this time.

However, this was sanctioned fun. Shadis had declared himself pleased with them; for what exactly, Reiner was unsure, but the instructor had declared an early finish to the day's training, and allowed them the chance for some free time in the dining hall before lights out that evening. Reiner supposed it was part of the 'carrot and stick' style training he was somewhat familiar with from before.

_Before.....the old life...._

It was strange; sometimes he completely forgot who he was and what he was doing here. He liked those times best, when he could be nothing more than a simple soldier amongst his comrades, training to fight that most inhuman of foes; a foe you were not in danger of feeling sympathy for. But then something would inevitably remind him of his true purpose here, and the depression and guilt would flood back into his brain before he even had a chance to brace himself for their impact.

He busied himself with watching his comrades with a faraway expression on his face. Sasha...Somehow having managed to find another piece of bread even though the plates had long been cleared; nibbling on it as she listened to the music with an enraptured expression on her face. From the bread or the tune Reiner could not tell, but he suspected the former. Connie was singing lustfully, belting out the words as if his life depended on it. Eren.....Eren was playing the flute, providing musical accompaniment. If you had asked Reiner which of his comrades was most likely to play an instrument, Eren would not have been his first choice; but there he sat, eyes closed and skilfully skirling out the notes as his fingers danced across the instrument, an almost peaceful expression on his countenance. Mikasa watched him, a slight blush upon her cheeks, as she silently mouthed the words of the song, almost as if the world was for she and Eren alone. Armin was singing the way people with no confidence do; quietly. But enough of the 104th were raising their voices that the hut was filled with the sound of their merriment.

_So long ago...._

''Something wrong?'' A voice snapped him out of his people watching, and he flushed guiltily as he turned to face Krista. She was so short that even though he was sitting and she was standing, their eyes were only just level. He found he liked it, and his flush darkened.

''P...Pardon me?''

''Is there something wrong? You're very quiet Reiner, don't you like singing?''

_God, her eyes are big. Like limpid pools..._

''I like singing fine, Krista. I guess I just don't know the words to the song is all.'' He grinned, fidgeting with his tankard and gazing down at the contents. Small beer. Brewed for children, and as a result, served to the cadets, most of whom were younger even than him. He'd had chance on occasion to sample proper alcohol, including spirits and wine; a lot of it was because he looked older than his years and would be on occasion offered such beverages, but occasionally Marleyan soldiers he had known would offer him hard alcohol as a kind of joke; like giving it to a dog or a monkey to see what happens. Get the Eldian drunk, hilarious.

Krista blinked. ''How can you not know this song? It's the song of the Survey Corps! ''

He shrugged, and grinned to her. ''Maybe I don't want to join the Survey Corps.''

At that, she laughed. ''Oh, I think you will. You're the type. A hero.''

Now that took him aback. He blushed. He had been raising his tankard to his lips, but now he lowered it. ''….A hero?''

''Well...I think that when a person is faced with a difficult decision...making the right call is what makes them a hero. I think you'd make the right call, in such a situation.''

_The right call....Oh, if only you knew..._

''Well, thank you Krista. I think.'' He smirked down at her, and finally took the sip he had been meaning to for the past thirty seconds. She slipped herself down beside him, smoothing her skirt beneath her backside as she settled on the stool. In truth, he hadn't given much thought to which regiment he would join when training was over; Annie was pushing hard for the military police, reasoning that the information they needed would be easier to come by in the interior districts they'd have access to in such a regiment. Bertholdt didn't seem to have an opinion, beyond wanting them all to stick together. Reiner had decided to be practical like Annie, and go for the most appropriate regiment. But he had a feeling in his gut that the best way to go wasn't necessarily the Military Police.

''Do you think she's in love with him?'' She asked suddenly, causing Reiner to jerk slightly in alarm.

''W...Who? Pardon me?''

''Mikasa...'' Krista nodded to the girl staring at her flautist. ''She doesn't talk to the other girls much. But a few of us think she's in love with Eren.''

Reiner laughed. ''Pretty safe bet, wouldn't you say?''

She giggled. ''I suppose so. I just never assumed that seeing someone in love would be so...Obvious. And he just can't tell. I like to think if someone was in love with me, I'd be able to tell.''

Reiner raised his tankard to hide his smirk. In this score, she was failing at least twice as much as Eren was.

''Reiner?''

''Yes?''

''Reiner?''

''Yes Krista?''

''REINER!''

His eyes opened, and the memory faded in a blur of coloured glass. He was laying in a bed. His mouth was intensely dry, a sign of recent heavy healing. What had happened? It was hazy...he remembered hearing gunshots...Ah. The farmhouse. He was shot...But then why was he in a bed? Porco must have saved him...No that's not right, Porco was shot first. So that only left...

''Reiner?'' The voice he had heard, repeating itself once more, and he groggily turned his head to gaze up at the sleepy expression of a girl with long dark hair, an aquiline nose, and a concerned expression on her face. ''Can you hear me?''

''…Pieck?'' He asked, and her expression immediately sagged into one of relief.

''You remember me then...That's good. It took Pock half an hour to recall who he was. I was bricking myself. What do you think you were doing, attacking a farmhouse teeming with armed guards?''

He grunted, and let his eyes close again, his voice a rasp. ''Water please. And it wasn't teeming...there were...Four, I think?''

''You think. Well done, General. And why did you decide to attack it in the first place?''

''…We were trying to save you.'' He muttered, almost poutily. She laughed as she poured him a glass of water from the pitcher that was by his bedside. She'd kept it there to assuage the thirst she knew from long experience would come. She lifted his head with remarkable tenderness, and touched the glass to his lips, where he sipped on it thirstily.

''Well you got me this far I guess, even if you failed at the last hurdle. Lucky by that point I had recovered enough to finish the job. Well, that and thanks to the little blonde piece who was here already. She distracted your would-be murderer enough for me to sneak up on him.''

Reiner sighed in relief as he finished his drink, and found he had enough strength to open his eyes again, the dull throbbing headache of dehydration starting to fade. ''Little blonde....?''

Pieck's eyes lit up, and her face split into a grin. ''Oh, that's right. You didn't see her. But believe me, she knows you. I tell you, I've never seen conflict on a face like that before. She wasn't sure if she wanted to kill you or hug you.''

''Don't play games Pieck, who the hell are you talking about?''

''Me''

The voice was one he hadn't heard in years. It made him lurch bolt upright, to the point that his head swam, and he almost toppled out of the bed. There she was. Stood in the doorway. Just as he remembered her. Her golden hair, her large eyes...Her hands resting on her...Her....

_Oh God no. Not that._

Even though he knew he had no right to feel the despair he felt, it still washed over him at the sight of her rounded belly, hands settled atop it in a protective manner. He was no judge of such things, but she was almost ready to his eyes. His stomach felt like it had stones in it, and he found he couldn't tear his eyes away from her. What was she doing here, of all places? Wasn't she the Queen now? Why was she in some farmhouse in the middle of nowhere?

''Krista...''

''Historia.''

''Y...Yes of course...Historia...I...you look....you look...''

''Pregnant?''

Reiner blanched, and looked downwards. Pieck laughed. ''Well, I'd better go check on Pock. Can I trust you two alone? Hmm?'' She nudged Historia suggestively, and turned to sweep from the room. Silence hung in the air for what felt like eternity.

''I like her. She seems nice.''

''She is.'' Reiner confirmed. ''If you're on her good side that is. Otherwise...'' He trailed off.

''She's at least honest, no doubt. Would she pretend to be a friend only to stab you in the back at a later point?''

Reiner was briefly tempted to inform Historia that Pieck had spent a few weeks pretending to be a member of the Paradis military before Marley's failed attack, but good sense prevailed, and he kept his mouth shut. ''I'm sorry, Histora.''

''Oh, well that's alright then.'' She said sarcastically; but her tone didn't have the malice she expected it to have. She eased herself down into sitting on the foot of his bed, giving the smallest sigh of relief, and watched him as he sat there. Her eyes didn't seem angry; they seemed almost tired. Reiner knew the look. It's the look of someone for whom the lines have become blurred, and black and white had recently become grey.

''You can ask if you want. I know you're dying to know.''

He studied her. She was clad in a simple linen dress that covered her from collarbone to heel, though it lacked sleeves. Her hair was loose down her back, in a fine golden curtain.

_God, she's barely changed._ Her eyes were still just as big and beautiful as he remembered, but there was a certain wary hardness to them now. Something he hadn't seen back when she was Krista. He wondered what had happened to her, or if it had always been there and he just hadn't seen it. Hadn't wanted to see it. ''Ask what?''

''Who the father is?'' She said with the smallest twitch of her lips. ''Nobody had dared to ask me before Pieck did. I suppose it was easier for her since she doesn't know me.''

Reiner smiled thinly. ''I don't care.''

That DID shock her. And it showed.

''You...don't care?''

''Nope. Good luck to him whoever he is. Is he around at least, or has he left you alone?'' Reiner was surprised at the harshness of his own tone, and it took him aback to realise that he was intensely jealous.

''...It's not like that.'' She murmured. ''It's...It's complicated. It's important.''

She looked down to his hand, which was holding a fresh glass of water. He pressed it into her grip, and she took it gratefully in both hands. She sipped it like that. Almost like a child. A pregnant child. His jealousy turned to sorrow in an instant.

''Well...Not like I am going anywhere.'' He said, in what he hoped was a reassuring tone.

It was. And maybe it was the relief at seeing someone she knew, someone she once called friend...but she began to talk. And tell.


End file.
